AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson is now making a case for the
deal, and is specifically citing iPhone users as benefiting from the merger reports
Business Week.

Stephenson says that the bringing T-Mobile into the fold
will boost network capacity (by as much as 30 percent) and improve service for
the iPhone and other smartphones that hog data.

“This transaction is very instrumental," said
Stephenson. “Virtually on the day you close the deal, getting a 30 percent lift
in capacity in New York City: that’s a significant improvement in call quality
and data throughput.”

As for Sprint's concerns about the deal going through,
Stephenson says that there is nothing to worry about. “This is an intensely
competitive industry. It is intense before we do this transaction, it will be intense
after we do this transaction.”

Reviewers, customers, and independent agencies have repeatedly
blasted AT&T’s 3G service. In December 2010, Consumer Reports proclaimed,"AT&T is the worst carrier." AT&T
ranked dead last in a survey of 58,000 Consumer Reports readers.